1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to devices and methods for lyophilizing a liquid that has been filled into a container that is sealed, particularly vials, dispensers, and other containers for medicaments and other substances.
2. Background Information
Sterile filling of medicament containers or dispensers, such as vials, is a relatively complex and expensive process. Commercially available medicament vials include a glass or plastic vial and a rubber stopper. Prior to filling, the vials and stoppers are typically washed, sterilized, such as by the application of radiation thereto, or autoclaved, and then filled and assembled in sterilized isolators.
An improvement to such prior art systems is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,684,916, entitled “Medicament Vial Having a Heat-Sealable Cap, and Apparatus and Method for Filling the Vial,”, U.S. application Ser. No. 10/766,172 (U.S. Pat. No. 7,032,631), entitled “Medicament Vial Having a Heat-Sealable Cap, and Apparatus and Method for Filling the Vial,” and in U.S. application Ser. No. 10/655,455 (U.S. Pat. No. 7,100,646), entitled “Sealed Containers and Methods of Making and Filling Same,” each of which is assigned to the assignee of the present invention and is hereby expressly incorporated by reference as part of the present disclosure as if fully set forth herein. The apparatus and methods disclosed in these co-pending applications involve vials including resealable stoppers, wherein a sealed empty vial is sterilized, such as by applying radiation thereto, the stopper is penetrated by a needle or like injection member to fill the empty, sterilized vial with a medicament or other substance to be contained therein, and then the needle hole in the stopper is re-sealed by applying thermal energy, such as with a laser beam, thereto.
Although the vials with resealable stoppers can provide significant advantages with respect to cost savings, simplicity, and sterility assurance in comparison to prior art vial and stopper assemblies, they require needle penetration and resealing of the stoppers. Also, many current vial and stopper assemblies do not permit mechanical connection to a syringe such that the same vial can be used to provide multiple doses of medicaments or other substances contained therein.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to overcome one or more of the drawbacks and disadvantages of prior vials and stoppers or vial and stopper assemblies.